Cash for Clunkers

So posting 171 still is not the final deal. Now we wait for Obama, I guess that make since. That would make the window very short according to some of the postings.

 

Xman, I expect Obama will sign off on it next week since it was attached to a supplemental war spending bill. The biggest delay has been getting it through Congress, I know there was talk about it back in January! Getting it up and running in 30 days is going to be impressive if it happens. (not that I'm cynical or anything<g>)

 

Yep! I did see posting about the 30 day and some concerns on timing. I think the window could open and closed on this before people even understand how to tap into the 1 Billion dollars, but on the other hand that could be a good thing less debt for our kids. The Gov can say we tried to do something good, to help.

 

I'm guessing the majority of people that are driving these eligible vehicles will not be the ones who will be able to understand this bill.

 

Hey! just because I'm an old blonde broad there's no reason to insult me! I guess I'm in the minority then. I read the bills before they were passed in the House & Senate. I haven't gotten the final version that was submitted with the supplemental war funding bill.

Funny: My husband and I stopped at a good sized Toyota dealership today. Naturally, we were approached by a salesperson. We told him we'd just test driven a V at another dealership, know we want a IV but haven't decided on the color yet so we were checking out what he had on the lot. Nice - they had all the colors except Blizzard Pearl. We told him about Cash for Clunkers and as we left he pulled out his cell phone to call his sister. Turns out she has a '98 Ford Explorer too!

 

I have four drivers in my family and only one out my five cars is a Prius. I have four cars that are between the age of 10 to 19 years old. I guess this makes me too stupid to read and comprehend a news paper. And I thought I was just frugal.

 

I was told that the way the program works is the dealer will appraise the vehicle you bring in and the government pays the difference. So... if you have a truck worth $500 the dealer gives you $500 for the truck then the government would give you the $4,000 difference.

 

You are the type of person this bill was written for. With only ~250,000 vouchers available they will go quick. It will be people sitting on the sidelines right now that will quickly snap them up. These people have been thinking about buying a new car but have decided to wait and hold onto their money until we come out of this recession.

The whole point of this bill is to get these people to buy a car to help boost the economy. The environment benefits are secondary.

 

Isn't this the truth. You should the firestorm of stupidity over at other auto sites. I won't how many of them made it out of 8th grade not to mention high school.

 

I hope you got his business card. If his sister does go for the CFC program, then this salesman will likely keep asking his boss until he finds out how this program works and what to do. He might be a good person to contact (hopefully) when you are ready.

 

The sad part is that the state governments keep cutting education when they make budget cuts. Education should be priority #1 for any society on earth, any time in history. Education should never be cut. You would think the educated politicians would understand the value of not cutting education, but nope! All they care about are their own tax cuts and they give an F less about education. A society that CUTS from their most valuable asset. How ironic and self-destructive.

 

The # of Toyota cars that count as clunkers is actually non-zero if you look at Cash for Clunkers Eligible Vehicles List - Edmunds.com (if their list is right). There are a bunch of eligible Toyota and Honda "light trucks" on the list.

I think Edmunds' list actually needs to be more specific and list out the quailfying engines and transmissions. In checking fueleconomy.gov, after the adjustment by formula to the new EPA method, the 91 Camry V6 auto gets "18 mpg" combined (I used to have one) and therefore is a "clunker". The 4 cylinder auto gets 24, mpg, so that fails the definition.

More info at:
Cash for Clunkers Car Buying Stimulus Bill
Where can I find more information on improving the fuel economy of my car?

Yeah, the low bar of 2 and 5 mpg improvement and even lower of 1 and 2 mpg for other trucks is just pitiful. They'll just go buy another guzzler.

 

Here's the latest info on Cash for Clunkers - now dubbed the Car Allowance Rebate System (CARS). It starts July 1st and you have to have proof that the car has been insured for the past 12 mos. and bring that to your dealer. The dealer will then be responsible for submitting the paperwork to NHTSA and 10 days later if all criteria is met, NHTSA issues the credit to the dealer.

Here's the government website: NHTSA.gov - CARS - Car Allowance Rebate System
Here's the text of the bill: http://cars.gov/files/CARS-Law.pdf

 

Well I did say majority, not all. Some are indeed frugal and I commend you on that. Your priorities are indeed an example to your kids. I hope you get one of these vouchers (assuming you're ready to trade)

 

Why would a dealer want to give you anything for a vehicle they are required to crush or shred? I'm guessing these will be $4500 vouchers.

 

OK, I appoligize. There must be a lot of you that drive a car into the ground and have a clunker to trade. If you have a computer and know how to comment on PC then you should indeed be able to manage through the clunker bill. So let me rephrase this. Seeing as how most of you think your sales people are worms and morons, then I'm guessing you'll have a hard time finding a dealership that knows how to participate. They have to want to do this I don't think you can force it on them. You may have to eventually buy a Chrysler

 

Some money but not much. The most recent price I could find was from Fall 2008 when metal prices were much higher than they are now. At that time the scrap rate for a whole prepared car was $120 per ton.

(At my local scrap yard to prepare a car you must remove the glass, tires, and gas tank)

 

Yes, I do tend to own a car for quite a long time, ergo a Prius makes alot of sense for me. I can't even harass my salesperson on this as he is well aware of the bill and watching it closely as well. The word from management at the dealership is they intend to participate in the program (it's one of the larger dealerships in the area). There ain't no Chrysler in my future - phew!

 

I'm sure EVERY dealer will be clamoring to get these sales. Money in the bank for them...

Such a bad bad law. Talk about a tax break for the rich (not that I am) I would be a fool not to take advantage of this (as I'll pay for it later one way or the other).

I have a 95 Blazer (only 96,000 miles on it) that I've owned since it was new and in the last three years I have not used it more than a dozen times. I have kept it as a tow vehicle and for sentimental reasons. If some fool (named Uncle Sam) wants to give me $4500 for a car worth maybe $1500 towards a new Prius, I'm ordering mine tomorrow. Sad thing is that it is in far better shape than many cars I see on the road in the city and this one will get destroyed rather than donated to someone who could really use a car. I already gave away my 88 Nova TwinCam (really a Toyota Corolla with a bow-tie) but it would not have qualified.

I can afford a new car, but many can't and this is just a tax break for the people that can afford it. Unfortunately most people who are actually driving the cars that qualify likely can't afford a new car even with $3500-$4500 reduction. Likely many will try and we will all end up with more people burdened with a debt they can't pay....

Is there anybody at home in Washington these days?

 

A Clunk for the Cashers!

I copied this off a website reportedly giving facts about how the program works, www.cashforclunkersfacts

Who is eligible?
1. Only purchase or lease of new vehicles will qualify
2. Clunkers eligible for the program must get 18 MPG, OR LESS 3. Must hold a valid legal title to the car seeking to trade in
4. Registered to the same owner for the full year preceding the trade-in

#2 is a killer for me and IMO isn't really fair. MUST get 18 MPG or less?

So since I happened to try to drive and maintain a relatively economical older car, I can't qualify? Although my 93 Accord is rapidly becoming a "Clunker" with age, it's MPG rating is higher than 18 MPG. So if I'm reading the information correctly I would not qualify.

So I get penalized because I've tried to keep a economical older car. Meanwhile Joe Gas Guzzler, who hasn't given a damn about pollution, or gas useage get's $4,500 for his 1976 P.O.S., that he's held together with duct tape?

My Honda has been great, but just given it's age it isn't worth more than $2000 tops. As a trade in, it would probably garner half that or less.

So I go to get my new Prius, and all I get is what little I might be able to talk the dealer into giving me as a trade in, which is going to be minimal. Or if I want the heartache and trouble I can try and sell it private party, which I really don't want to do.

Joe Gas Guzzler can limp his crap car to the lot, buy a vehicle that only get's a few miles better gas mileage and he get's a huge bonus from the government?

No, that just doesn't seem fair. Why should I be penalized because my aging "clunker" isn't quite crappy enough? Why should someone else be rewarded because they have been driving a huge gas user and wreck?

The idealistic principal behind the program seems nice, but as written it just isn't fair IMO.

Am I missing something or is this a huge flaw in the program?